I am Chris Miller, and I lead mattress testing for our team at Dweva. When I say we “test a mattress,” I mean a structured, repeatable process that runs from unboxing through multi-week sleep trials, with clear test steps and scoring standards behind every rating.
Modern review labs and clinical research treat mattresses as measurable products, not just soft or firm rectangles. Test groups now use pressure mapping, structured body panels, long-term trials, and durability simulations to judge performance in a repeatable way. Clinical studies also track how firmness, support, and design affect back pain, alignment, and sleep quality.
This page explains exactly how we test mattresses and how each step fits into our scoring system. I walk through firmness, support, pressure relief, motion isolation, temperature control, responsiveness, edge support, durability, and materials. I also show how each member of our testing team stresses the mattress in a different way, and how our clinical advisor, Dr. Adrian Walker, checks our findings against current sleep-medicine evidence.
In the end, every result feeds into a simple, visible five-point scale for readers. Inside the lab we often work on a ten-point scale, which I explain at the end of this page.
Our Testing Philosophy and Team
Why We Test Mattresses This Way
From the perspective of a sleeper, a mattress has one job. It must help your body rest without creating new pain or making old pain worse. Research on mattress firmness and chronic back pain keeps pointing toward a balanced, medium-firm range that supports alignment while still relieving pressure.
That kind of outcome does not come from one quick showroom test. It comes from:
- Repeatable lab steps.
- Multiple body types.
- Real nights of sleep.
We designed our protocol around those ideas. We use structured tests similar to large review labs for pressure relief, motion isolation, edge support, cooling, and durability. Then we extend those steps with multi-week use by our fixed team.
Who Sleeps on Every Mattress
You already see our regular names across brand reviews. The same people test every mattress. That consistency lets us compare one model against another over time.
- I am a medium-build combination sleeper with mild lower-back tightness. I move between back and side and do laptop work in bed. I pay close attention to lumbar support, hip alignment, and how a mattress holds up past the first week.
- Marcus is larger and heavier, with some stomach sleeping and real focus on hip support and heat.
- Carlos is a medium-build back sleeper who watches spinal alignment and mid-back fatigue.
- Mia is petite and highly sensitive to shoulder and hip pressure on her side.
- Jenna is a combination sleeper who always tests as part of a couple.
- Ethan is Jenna’s restless partner and a constant source of motion on the shared surface.
- Jamal is tall and athletic, with knee and hip tightness after sports and long days.
As far as real-world testing is concerned, these bodies give us a wide range of loads and sleeping habits. We then layer Dr. Walker’s clinical view on top.
Dr. Walker’s Clinical and Ergonomic Oversight
Dr. Adrian Walker is a board-certified sleep, pulmonary, and internal medicine doctor with a strong ergonomics background. He reviews our methods and the patterns we see.
He cares about:
- Spine alignment claims versus what our bodies report.
- Pressure-relief stories versus common pain patterns he sees in clinic.
- Whether mattress firmness ranges match evidence on comfort and sleep quality.
When our notes conflict with marketing language, he highlights that gap. When our scores line up with current research on medium-firm comfort and lower pain scores, he points that out as well.
Overview of Our Mattress Testing Steps
We test every mattress through the same main stages.
- Intake, unboxing, and setup.
- Initial expansion, off-gassing, and build inspection.
- Firmness and feel calibration.
- Support and spinal alignment testing.
- Pressure relief testing.
- Motion isolation testing.
- Edge support testing.
- Temperature and cooling evaluation.
- Responsiveness and ease of movement testing.
- Durability and construction assessment.
- Multi-week real-world sleep trials.
- Final scoring and five-point scale conversion.
Each stage has clear actions, clear notes, and a defined role in the final rating.
Step One: Intake, Unboxing, and Setup
Delivery and Packaging Check
When a mattress arrives, we log:
- Delivery method and packaging.
- Weight and handling difficulty.
- Any early damage or defects.
From a user view, these details matter. If Marcus and I struggle to carry a king size up one flight, we mention that. If Mia can move a full size alone without risk, that matters too.
We do not score performance here, yet we document practical issues that affect real buyers.
Setup and Foundation
We place the mattress on the kind of base it is meant to use. That can be a platform, slatted frame, or adjustable base, as long as it matches brand guidelines and general industry recommendations.
This kind of detail matters because wrong bases can change support, edge behavior, and long-term durability.
Step Two: Expansion, Off-Gassing, and Build Inspection
Expansion and Off-Gassing
Bed-in-a-box mattresses need time to expand and vent. Many review labs give at least 24 hours before formal tests.
We allow compressed models 48 hours in our test space before scoring. During that window, we log:
- How quickly the mattress reaches near full height.
- How strong any off-gassing smell feels.
- Whether smell fades with airflow and time.
Marcus and I handle most of the early off-gassing checks, because we are usually the first in the room. If a smell lingers for several days, readers hear about it later.
Layer and Material Inspection
Once the mattress opens, we inspect:
- Stated layer stack and actual feel through the cover.
- Foam density and coil gauge information when available.
- Edge reinforcement, zoning, and obvious quality issues.
We compare the design to known patterns from research and large test labs. For example, we treat thick, high-quality comfort systems and strong support bases as positive signs for pressure relief and durability.
Dr. Walker pays attention to zoning and support layer design. If a product claims special lumbar support or pressure zones, he wants us to track that later in alignment and pressure tests.
Step Three: Firmness and Overall Feel Calibration
Our Firmness Scale
We use a ten-point internal firmness scale, similar to other review sites. Lower numbers mean softer, higher numbers mean firmer. We calibrate by comparing every new mattress against a set of reference models. Those reference beds sit at known points on the firmness spectrum based on repeated testing.
I start each new test with a blind comparison against that reference group. Afterwards, Marcus, Carlos, and Mia run their own checks and we settle on a shared firmness number.
First-Hour Feel
In this stage, we log:
- Surface feel under elbows and knees.
- How quickly the comfort layers respond under body weight.
- Whether we feel floating, balanced, or “through the top” into the support core.
These notes do not decide the final rating. They tell us how the mattress might behave under longer loads and other tests.
Dr. Walker reminds us that medium-firm profiles often deliver the best tradeoff between comfort and alignment for many people with back pain. When a mattress lands far outside that range, we pay closer attention to who might still like it.
Step Four: Support and Spinal Alignment Testing
Back-Sleep Alignment
Support testing asks a simple question. Does this mattress keep each spine in a healthy line while weight settles into the layers.
Carlos leads structured back-sleep testing, because mid-back fatigue bothers him quickly on unsupportive surfaces. During these sessions, we:
- Film his posture at the side on each mattress.
- Check lumbar gap and sacrum position with a straightedge reference.
- Log how his back feels after fifteen to twenty minutes.
We repeat these steps for me, Marcus, and Jamal, then compare notes.
Clinical research connects medium-firm support and better spinal alignment with less back pain and better sleep architecture. Dr. Walker reviews our alignment photos, especially when a mattress claims special back support.
Side-Sleep Alignment
Side sleeping shifts the focus to shoulders and hips. A good mattress lets those areas sink enough while still keeping the spine mostly straight.
Mia and I handle this part. We:
- Check from behind for curves or kinks in the neck and lower back.
- Note whether the waist collapses into the mattress or floats.
- Log shoulder, rib, and hip comfort after fifteen minutes.
If a mattress holds the head too high or too low with a standard pillow, we say that. Pillow choice still matters, yet the mattress also shapes neck position.
Stomach-Sleep Alignment
Marcus and I run shorter stomach-sleep sessions, because long stomach sleeping already stresses the lower back for many people.
We watch for:
- Hips dropping far below ribs.
- Hard pressure at the front of the pelvis.
- Any sharp lower-back sway on video review.
In Dr. Walker’s view, long stomach sleeping often clashes with good back health, yet he knows some people still prefer it. We describe clearly whether a mattress makes that position safer or worse, as far as we can see.
Step Five: Pressure Relief Testing
Pressure relief deserves its own detailed protocol. We want to know how each mattress handles peak load at shoulders, hips, knees, and sacrum.
Structured Body Sessions
I start with timed sessions on my back, right side, left side, and a shorter stomach test. I monitor:
- How quickly my lower back relaxes.
- When my shoulder and hip settle rather than jab.
- Whether any tingling or numbness appears.
Mia repeats similar sessions with longer side-sleep periods. She is our most sensitive tester at the shoulder. Marcus brings the heavy-frame view and shows whether comfort layers collapse under bigger loads.
We rate each position on a ten-point internal pressure relief scale, then move to instruments.
Pressure Mapping
We use a thin pressure-mapping mat between the sleeper and the mattress. This system divides the contact area into sensor cells and reports relative pressure values. Labs and review groups use similar tools to gauge pressure relief across mattresses and body types.
We track:
- Peak pressures at shoulders and hips for side sleeping.
- Peak pressures at sacrum and shoulder blades for back sleeping.
- Contact area and pressure patterns across thighs, back, and torso.
Good pressure relief usually shows broader contact areas with lower peaks, rather than tiny red hot spots. We compare those maps with each tester’s notes from body sessions. When data and experience disagree, we rerun that position and check our setup.
Clinical work on pressure redistribution surfaces for medical use supports the idea that lower, more spread pressure at bony points benefits tissue health and comfort. We adapt that idea to consumer mattresses without claiming medical status.
Whole-Night Pressure Behavior
Short tests do not show everything. Many people wake after an hour on one side because of pressure at a single joint.
During multi-week trials, we ask every tester to log:
- Which position they fell asleep in.
- Where they woke and why.
- Whether wake-ups felt driven by shoulder, hip, or knee discomfort.
When Mia stops waking with shoulder pain on one mattress after weeks of issues on others, that shift matters more than a small numerical difference in the lab.
Step Six: Motion Isolation Testing
Motion isolation tests measure how well a mattress keeps one partner from feeling the other person’s movement. Labs and review sites treat it as a core performance criterion.
Couple Body Test
Jenna and Ethan handle the main couple test. They lie side by side with realistic spacing. Then they run a fixed script:
- One partner turns from back to side.
- One partner sits up, then lies back down.
- One partner gets out of bed and returns.
The still partner rates disturbance on a simple ten-point scale for each action. We repeat with positions swapped.
Object and Sensor Test
We also run a more controlled object test that mimics methods used by other labs.
We:
- Place a small, stable object near the center.
- Drop a fixed-weight item at measured distances.
- Record how much the object moves.
On some mattresses, we also use simple accelerometer readings to quantify vibration transfer, taking a cue from external research and modern test setups.
These readings give us a motion-isolation score that we can compare across models. Jenna’s and Ethan’s diaries then show how those lab values feel as real nights together.
Step Seven: Edge Support Testing
Edge support affects seating comfort, usable surface area, and perceived security near the border. Many review organizations treat it as its own rating and use structured edge tests.
Sitting and Lying Edge Tests
Marcus leads most sitting tests, because his weight stresses the perimeter strongly. He:
- Sits on the edge to tie shoes and leans forward.
- Rates how secure or “slidy” the edge feels.
- Logs any feeling that he might roll off.
Jenna and I run lying tests near the border in side and back positions. We track whether the mattress lets us use the outer thirds without feeling like we will slide away.
Weighted Compression Check
We also place fixed weights along the edge and measure:
- Starting height at the border.
- Height with weight applied.
- Change over repeated cycles.
Research on mattress durability and sagging highlights the role of strong edges for long-term shape and support. We reference that work when we interpret edge performance and probable aging.
Step Eight: Temperature and Cooling Evaluation
Temperature control matters for comfort, especially for hot sleepers like Marcus. Review groups now measure thermal behavior with both instruments and real people.
Real-World Heat Build-Up
Marcus and I run long sessions under typical bedding and log:
- How quickly heat builds under the back and hips.
- Whether the surface traps warmth or allows a cool feel.
- How often we need to adjust covers to stay comfortable.
He is very sensitive to trapped heat. When he stays comfortable on a thick foam bed, that detail carries extra weight.
Surface and Core Temperature Checks
We combine subjective notes with simple thermal measurements. In some tests we:
- Record surface temperature before and after body contact.
- Track how fast the surface cools after we step away.
These checks echo practices used by other labs that employ thermal imagery and temperature sensors to assess cooling claims.
We then link cooling behavior with material choices, such as foams, phase-change textiles, coil systems, and airflow cutouts.
Step Nine: Responsiveness and Ease of Movement
Responsiveness describes how fast and how strongly a mattress reacts when weight shifts. People feel this as bounce, pushback, and freedom to move.
Labs and testers often assess this behavior with drop tests and high-speed cameras that measure rebound height and timing. We do not copy every device in those labs, yet we follow the same core idea.
Body-Based Movement Testing
Jamal and Ethan act as our main movement testers because they both roll and reposition often. They run a fixed script:
- Move from back to side and back again.
- Shift from lying to sitting and back.
- Change positions while half asleep during night sessions.
They log:
- Whether the mattress lets them turn without effort.
- Whether they feel stuck in slow foams.
- How the surface reacts under quick knee or hip pressure.
I watch these sessions and write down any clear pattern, such as fast bounce with minimal damping on latex hybrids, or slow, deep recovery on thick memory foam beds.
Drop and Rebound Checks
We also run simple drop tests on the surface. We:
- Drop a fixed weight from a set height.
- Record how high it rebounds using frame-by-frame video.
We do not pretend this equals industrial lab gear, but it gives a repeatable responsiveness index that we track across mattresses. Mattresses aimed at active sleepers or couples who value bounce have to perform well here while still protecting pressure relief and alignment.
Step Ten: Durability and Construction Assessment
Long-term durability matters as much as first-month comfort. Research on mattress aging and foam breakdown shows links between material quality, use duration, and increased back pain.
Material Quality and Design
We assess:
- Foam densities when brands disclose them.
- Coil type, coil count, and gauge.
- Quilting build, stitching quality, and edge reinforcements.
We compare this information with independent guidance on how materials influence sagging, support loss, and edge collapse over time.
Simulated Wear and Early Sag Checks
We do not run full industrial fatigue rigs; that work belongs to specialized labs. However, we still simulate early wear by:
- Repeating roll and sit cycles for each tester.
- Re-measuring height at center and edge after testing periods.
- Scanning for body impressions or early soft spots.
Dr. Walker pays attention to sag because long-term loss of support and changed pressure profiles can worsen back and joint symptoms. He views strong construction and stable edges as positive signals for future comfort.
Step Eleven: Multi-Week Real-World Sleep Trials
Lab data only tells part of the story. Sleep is messy. People go to bed sore, stressed, overheated, or exhausted. We need to see how each mattress works under these ordinary conditions.
Fixed-Team Sleep Logs
Every tester spends at least several weeks on each mattress, often more. During that time, we log:
- Nightly comfort ratings by position.
- Time to fall asleep and time spent awake in bed.
- Morning pain levels in shoulders, hips, knees, and back.
- Any changes in restlessness or sleep satisfaction.
These logs look simple, yet over many nights they build a clear picture. If Marcus keeps waking with hip pain on one mattress after doing fine on others, that pattern matters. If Mia’s shoulder pain fades on a mattress with thicker comfort layers and good pressure maps, that aligns with lab expectations.
Long-term consumer panels and in-home tests from other organizations show similar value for extended trials. We mirror that practice on a smaller, more controlled scale with a stable team.
Cross-Checking With Clinical Evidence
Dr. Walker reviews our multi-week logs against current literature on mattress firmness, back pain, and sleep quality. When he sees our team sleep better on medium-firm designs that also show good alignment and balanced pressure, that matches several systematic reviews.
He also reminds us that a single mattress cannot solve every medical problem. We reflect that limit clearly in our content.
How We Score Mattresses
After all this testing, we turn everything into numbers and clear language.
Performance Categories We Score
Internally, we score most mattresses on a ten-point scale in several categories:
- Support and spinal alignment.
- Pressure relief.
- Motion isolation.
- Edge support.
- Temperature regulation.
- Responsiveness and ease of movement.
- Materials and construction quality.
- Perceived value for price.
We also log firmness on a ten-point scale, though firmness is descriptive rather than good or bad.
Many of these categories mirror public test frameworks from large review labs and industry groups, which also score support, pressure relief, motion isolation, edge behavior, and cooling as separate criteria.
How We Combine Numbers and Experience
For each category, we blend:
- Lab-style measurements and structured tests.
- Multi-week sleep logs.
- Construction and material analysis.
- Dr. Walker’s clinical comments where relevant.
We weight those pieces differently by category. For example, pressure relief leans heavily on mapping and pain diaries. Support leans more on alignment checks and medical perspective. Temperature leans more on hot-sleeper feedback and thermal checks.
When the numbers and lived experience point in different directions, real sleep wins. If object tests say motion transfer is low but Jenna still feels every move from Ethan, we lower the motion isolation score.
How We Present Ratings on a Five-Point Scale
You may notice that I often talk about a ten-point scale in our methodology, yet the score boxes in our brand and model reviews usually show a five-point rating.
Here is what happens.
- We test and log raw values.
- We turn those values into internal scores out of ten for each performance area.
- We then convert those tens into half-step five-point scores for readers.
That conversion keeps the display simple while still preserving meaningful differences. It also matches what people are used to seeing in product ratings across the web.
From the perspective of the lab, the ten-point scale gives us enough granularity to compare models precisely. From the perspective of the reader, the five-point view stays easier to scan and easier to remember.
How You Can Use Our Test Results
When you read any of our mattress reviews or comparison pieces, every claim about comfort, support, or cooling comes from the process you see here.
- If you are a side sleeper, pay close attention to our pressure relief score and Mia’s notes.
- If you have chronic back issues, look carefully at support and alignment scores and at Dr. Walker’s comments.
- If you share a bed, read Jenna and Ethan’s motion isolation notes and our edge support findings.
- If you sleep hot, check Marcus’s logs and our temperature section.
- If you move a lot, focus on responsiveness scores and Jamal’s comments.
In my view, no single number replaces your own body. However, a clear method and consistent ratings help you narrow choices to the few mattresses most likely to work in your real bedroom, under your real conditions.
Every time we add a new mattress review, we run that mattress through these same steps. We use the same people, the same tools, and the same scales. That discipline keeps our How We Test Mattresses page connected directly to what you see in every individual review.
